Smell The Cult: The X Files

	Keywords:
	Paranoia Genre defining Cult classic

STARRING:
Gillian Anderson -	Scully
David Duchovny -	Mulder
Mitch Pileggi-	Skinner
William B. Davis -	Cigarette-Smoking Man
Nicholas Lea -	Alex Krycek
Robert Patrick -	John Doggett

Season

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Movies

Transmitted:	September 1993 - May 2002	Seasons:	9
Overall Rating:		Last Updated:	9th August 2010

Possibly THE show of the 90's, this was one of those odd moments in TV history whereby a genre specific, cult show hits the mainstream big time. Of course, once the sheep are told by their chosen newspapers that they should be watching it, they follow faithfully and, in this case, it can only have been damaging.
The first three series are stunning: Original, thought provoking and frightening, but once it was realised that it was popular, the experimentation and self congratulation began.
Still to see the last two seasons in truth (and whether I will ever get round to it is determined by whether I am ever house bound for a few months at some point due to an incapacitating illness), but the first three series are simply superb. Tense, dramatic and intelligent, with some of the best atmospheric music outside of an Italian Giallo movie, this started out just great. There's still some merit in series 4 through 7, but the hits are less frequent than before.

I guess the good times can never last for long.....

UPDATE - Finally got round to watching Season 8 and, wow, I was blown away. Defying all expectations, the series really returns to form as new FBI Agent John Doggett, played superbly well by Robert Patrick, joins the fray. He's the skeptic and, in a reversal of her original role, Scully is the open-minded believer. Frank Spotnitz and Chris Carter appear to handle most writing duties, which explains the lift in quality as, crucially, the intensity of the first three seasons is back, as electrifying as ever.
A great revival.

Season 1	Season Rating:

Pilot	High school students are being killed, and Mulder suspects aliens.

Deep Throat	A military test pilot disappears and, whilst investigating, Mulder and Scully meet Deep Throat, an enigmatic stranger who claims he can help them uncover The Truth.

Squeeze	Say hello to Eugene Victor Tooms, a man who hibernates for 30 years at a time, only emerging to consume human livers to sustain himself.

Conduit	Mulder investigates a case that seems to echo the disappearance of his own sister.
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The Jersey Devil	Something sinister lurks in the forest.

Shadows	An unseen entity seems to be committing murder.

Ghost in the Machine	Can machinery possess a state of consciousness? Well?

Ice	The X Files does its own version of The Thing. Very good indeed.
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Space	Is the US space programme being sabotaged?

Fallen Angel	Mulder investigates what he believes to be a clean up operation of a UFO crash site where he meets the wonderfully odd Max Fenig, a man who claims to have been abducted by aliens on numerous occasions.

Eve	Two men, on opposite ends of the country, are murdered simultaneously and, stranger still, their daughters appear to be two halves of identical twins.

Fire	An Irish pyromaniac has a little bit of fun.
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Beyond the Sea	Scully's recently deceased father pays her a visit.

Genderbender	A murder suspect appears to be both male and female, sometimes at the same time.

Lazarus	Body swap shenanigans when a bank robber shoots an FBI agent.

Young at Heart	An ex-con with a vendetta comes after Mulder. Nothing strange in that, apart from the fact he is four years dead.

E.B.E.	Mulder is hot on the trail of what he suspects to be a live alien being transported across the country.
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Miracle Man	A group called The Miracle Ministry suffer a spate of bizarre deaths.

Shapes	The Manitou stalks an Native American Reserve.

Darkness Falls	When Flesh Eating Insects Attack!

Tooms	Eugene's back, bringing a whole new meaning to avoiding a 'stretch' in prison. Sorry about that, folks.

Born Again	Resurrection nonsense as a dead policeman seems to have returned from beyond the grave.

Roland	A mentally handicapped janitor, working at a space research centre, becomes prime suspect in a murder investigation.

The Erlenmeyer Flask	Deep Throat points Mulder and Scully's investigations towards Purity Control, a project that fuses human test subjects with alien DNA.



Season 2	Season Rating:

Little Green Men	Now The X Files has been closed down, Mulder heads to SETI to search for proof of alien contact.

The Host	There's something nasty in the water system.

Blood	Digital displays provoke random acts of bloody violence.

Sleepless	Vietnam vets exhibit strange behaviour. Not surprising - they haven't slept in 20 years.
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Duane Barry (Pt 1)	Mulder acts as negotiator with hostage taker Duane Barry, who claims to be an abductee, but its not long before Mulder is a hostage and starting to go along with his stories.

Ascension (Pt 2)	Mulder tracks down Barry, who has taken Scully captive.

3	With Scully gone, vanished without a trace, Mulder must carry on with The X Files investigations, leading him into the shady world of vampire fetishism. The lucky swine.

One Breath	Scully turns up out of the blue, but in a coma and, inside her mind, a battle for survival is being fought.
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Firewalker	Mulder and Scully discover a brand new lifeform that can exist in the heat of a volcano.

Red Museum	A religious cult seems to be involved in the Purity Control project.

Excelsis Dei	In an old people's home, a nurse claims she was raped by one of the residents only....he was invisible.
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Aubrey	A killer from the 40's appears to have passed on his taste for bloodshed via genetics alone.

Irresistible	A morgue attendant who enjoys collecting trophies from the deceased turns his attentions to Scully.

Die Hand die Verletzt	The PTA. Don't trust them. They're all Satanists.

Fresh Bones	The dynamic duo get involved in Haitian voodoo.
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Colony (Pt 1)	At the height of the Cold War, were the Russians cloning American soldiers to infiltrate the self proclaimed Greatest Nation on Earth?

End Game (Pt 2)	The shape shifting alien bounty hunter abducts Scully. Oh, there's also some guff about Mulder's sister, but it's fucking dull as a granny's tits.

Fearful Symmetry	When Invisible Zoo Animals Attack!

Dod Kalm	A naval vessel abandons ship. When the crew are picked up just a few hours later, they have aged by decades.

Humbug	Killings occur at a town purpose built for the people that work at carnivals and freakshows.

The Calusari	Scully suspects child abuse in the deaths of two young type people, but Mulder thinks it is something all together more odd.

F. Emasculata	A new virus that causes hideous pain and welts on the skin strikes, and soon reaches epidemic proportions, even as the X Files pairing battle to contain it. Nice and sick this one, kids.

Soft Light	Could your own shadow be a threat? Mulder thinks so.

Our Town	Cannibalism in small town America. You've gotta love it.
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Anasazi (Pt 1)	Mulder thinks he is close to uncovering The Truth, but his investigations lead him to a Native American Reserve where he discovers a buried coach full of what he thinks are alien corpses. As he investigates, the lid slams shut....



Season 3	Season Rating:

The Blessing Way (Pt 2)	Mulder is rescued by some Native Americans who use their spiritual gifts to heal him. The Cigarette Smoking Man becomes desperate in his bid to recover the files.

Paper Clip (Pt 3)	The Cigarette Smoking Man and Skinner face off. Mulder discovers his sister may have been an alternate choice for abduction.

D.P.O.	A young man seems to be able to control lightning.

Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose	Mulder and Scully call on a genuine psychic to help solve a case.
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The List	A man vows vengeance on 5 men even as he is executed. When they start to die, Mulder and Scully are called in.

2Shy	A serial killer adopts unusual practices in order to lure his victims, then eats the evidence....

The Walk	What happens when a quadruple amputee gets pissed off?

Oubliette	Mulder seems touched by a case involving a young girl being kidnapped.
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Nisei (Pt 1)	What do Japanese WW2 scientists and alien autopsies have in common? Mulder intends to find out.

731 (Pt 2)	Scully works to discover more about the neck implant, whilst Mulder is trapped in a sealed train car with a bunch of apparent hybrids. The lucky swine.

Revelations	Scully takes up the role of believer with Mulder the skeptic in this tale of stigmata.

War of the Coprophages	Cockroaches as tiny, robotic alien invaders? You better believe it.
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Syzygy	As the planets align, so the behaviour in a small town spirals out of control.

Grotesque	A killer suspected by Mulder continues his killing spree, even from behind bars.

Piper Maru (Pt 1)	The Black Oil makes its first appearance, and soon envelops Krycek.

Apocrypha (Pt 2)	Mulder is hot on the heels of Krycek. Skinner gets shot.
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Pusher	A murderer has the ability to bend people to his will.

Teso Dos Bichos	A Shaman spirit from Ecuador on the rampage? Mulder thinks so.

Hell Money	Organ donation, Chinatown style.

Jose Chung's From Outer Space	A writer recounts two versions of the same tale in his new book.

Avatar	Skinner is accused of murder.

Quagmire	A sea serpent in small town America? You bet your Nessie on it.

Wetwired	TV's are being used to control people's minds.

Talitha Cumi (Pt 1)	A man who can apparently heal could be the key to unlocking the truth behind the aliens presence on Earth. Mulder thinks he has discovered a weapon that can kill aliens.



Season 4	Season Rating:

Herrenvolk (Pt 2)	Conclusion to the Season 3 cliffhanger. Mulder encounters clones of his sister as she was as a child.

Home	An inbred baby's corpse is discovered.

Teliko	Black Americans are being killed, all the colour having been drained from their skin.

Unruhe	Several deaths of women are linked to something known as The Howlers.
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The Field Where I Died	Mulder meets a woman who claims to have known him in a prior life.

Sanguinarium	A plastic surgery clinic is host to a series of grisly murders.

Musings of a Cigarette-Smoking Man	One possible backstory of The Cigarette Smoking Man is relayed.

Tunguska (Pt 1)	The Black Cancer is back, infecting a security guard at an airport.
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Terma (Pt 2)	Mulder is trapped in Russia, infected by The Black Cancer.

Paper Hearts	Could Mulder's dreams help him solve the mystery of his sister's disappearance? God I hope so to put an end to this tedious story arc.

El Mundo Gira	The Chupacabra Strikes Back.

Leonard Betts	Is it possible to regrow parts of your own body, even after you have died?
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Never Again	Scully dates a man whose tattoos appear to be sentient. Dreadful.

Memento Mori	Scully is diagnosed with cancer of the brain.

Kaddish	A Jewish man returns from the grave to avenge his own murder.

Unrequited	How many dead generals can you fit in the back of a limo?
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Tempus Fugit (Pt 1)	Max Fenig of NICAP is killed in a plane crash. Did a UFO cause the incident?

Max (Pt 2)	Conclusion of The Max Fenig Show.

Synchrony	Would a scientist listen if he himself arrived from the future and warned his present self to desist his line of research? Well, would he?

Small Potatoes	Mulder gets involved when five babies are all born with tails.
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Zero Sum	Skinner poses as Mulder ands begins working for The Cigarette Smoking Man . The bastard.

Elegy	Can bowling alleys kill?

Demons	Following psychotherapy to try to help him remember his sister, Mulder goes postal.

Gethsemane (Pt 1)	Has Mulder been fooled by those he hoped to expose? Is everything he ever believed a fabrication? He thinks so, so decides to top himself.....



Season 5	Season Rating:

Redux (Pt 2)	Continuation of Season 4 cliffhanger.

Redux II (Pt 3)	Conclusion of Season 4 cliffhanger.

Unusual Suspects	The backstory of The Lone Gunmen is revealed, including how they came to be.

Detour	Stranded in the woods, Mulder and Scully must deal with something ferocious.
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The Post-Modern Prometheus	First of the 'wacky' episodes that would blight later seasons, this sees our heroes in a Frankenstein story where the monster's aim appears to be to make women pregnant.

Christmas Carol (Pt 1)	Could the daughter of a recent murder victim be in some way related to Scully?

Emily (Pt 2)	Conclusion of the Scully based emoto-yawn fest

Kitsunegari	The Pusher is back, having escaped from his institution. Is he planning revenge on Mulder?
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Schizogeny	A therapist projects her own abuse sufferance into the minds of her patients.

Chinga	Stephen King penned episode that sees Scully investigating some small town horror in, where else, Maine.

Kill Switch	Internet virus threat guff by writers who really should have known better.

Bad Blood	Mulder kills a man who he believes to be a vampire, only to find his fangs are made of plastic and were bought from a novelty store.
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Patient X (Pt 1)	A woman claiming to be a multiple abductee annoys Mulder, now skeptical, but forges a bond with Scully. The Syndicate suspects an alien resistance movement is forming.

The Red and the Black (Pt 2)	Conclusion .

Travelers	Mulder hears a story of how his own father could have been involved in a series of bizarre experiments in the 1950's.

Mind's Eye	When Blind Women Kill.
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All Souls	Scully emotes about her dead daughter. Yawn.

The Pine Bluff Variant	Has Mulder turned against all that he believes?

Folie a Deux	Mulder is taken hostage by a man who claims he is being slowly turned into a zombie.

The End	The Cigarette Smoking Man goes to incredible lengths to cover up the truth.
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Season 6	Season Rating:

The Beginning	Mulder and Scully are reassigned, whilst another pair of FBI sorts take over their old jobs.

Drive	In a spin on Speed, Mulder is stuck in a car with a man whose ear condition means he must drive at high speed in a westerly direction else his head may well explode!

Triangle	Mulder encounters Nazi's in the Bermuda Triangle. This should be great. It is cobblers.

Dreamland, Part 1 & 2	More alien arc conspiracy guff, but pretty entertaining all the same.
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How The Ghosts Stole Christmas	Mulder and Scully head into a haunted house on Christmas Eve as Chris Carter's ego finally gets the better of him.

Terms of Endearment	A demon child is removed from its mother's womb by the demonic father> All a bit silly.

The Rain King	A weatherman's emotions are manifested in the actual weather.

S.R. 819	Skinner has been deliberately infected with a sinister new disease. M & S have only 24 hours to find out who did it to him and why in order to save his life.
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Tithonus	Scully's new partner goes head to head with her over a photographer who may or may not be a killer.

Two Fathers (Pt.1)	The Cigarette Smoking Man recounts the activities of The Syndicate over the past 50 years.

One Son (Pt 2)	Conclusion.

Agua Mala	Something is killing the old folk in Florida. Could it be a giant octopus monster?
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Monday	Groundhog Files.

Arcadia	M & S must pretend to be married to investigate disappearances at a luxurious new apartment complex.

Alpha	When Asian Dogs Attack.

Trevor	A dangerous convict appears to possess the ability to pass through solid walls.
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Milagro	Scully becomes the object of obsession of a writer suspected of murder.

The Unnatural	Would an alien abandon his race just because he loves baseball?

Three of a Kind	The Lone Gunmen are reunited with an old acquaintance.

Field Trip	A couple, dead less than a week, have been reduced to nothing but bone.
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Biogenesis (Pt 1)	Two scientists believe they may have proof that life did not begin on this planet.



Season 7	Season Rating:

The Sixth Extinction (Pt 2)	Continuation.

The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati (Pt 3)	Conclusion.

Hungry	Waiter, waiter. There's a brain eating monster in my burger....

Millennium	Promo. episode for Chris Carter's new series, Millennium.
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Rush	A killer evades capture by his ability to move at frightening speed.

The Goldberg Variation	A man who seems blessed with good luck causes savage consequences when he tries to pass on his gift.

Orison	Scully's former kidnapper, Pfaster, is broken out of jail and sets his sights on everyone's favourite female FBI agent once more.

The Amazing Maleeni	A magician who can swivel his head right round is found dead, with his head sawn clean off.
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Signs and Wonders	A religious cult use snakes to kill the impure.

Sein und Zeit (Pt 1)	A missing girl fires up memories for Mulder about his own sisters disappearance. Now there's a surprise.

Closure (Pt 2)	At last, the 'truth' is revealed about Mulder's sister. Thank fuck for that.
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X-COPS	Clever amalgam of The X-Files and Cops, this sees a Law Enforcement Officer (fnic, fnic) being filmed for the documentary series suddenly attacked by a monster.

First Person Shooter	Possibly the worst episode of any TV show I have ever seen. Mulder gets trapped inside a VR machine. Shockingly bad.

Theef	A spate of killings points to revenge against a doctor accused of committing an act of euthanasia many years ago.

En Ami	The Cigarette Smoking Man tells Scully he has cured a young boy of cancer.

Chimera	Mulder settles in for a life of comfort whilst Scully has to rough it.

All things	An old flame of Scully is dying. Mulder goes on the hunt for crop circles.

Brand X	Smoking kills. No, seriously.

Hollywood A.D.	M & S see themselves portrayed on the big screen. This is naval gazing of the highest order.

Fight Club	A pair of doppelgangers fall for the same man, with violent consequences. Just shit.
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Je Souhaite	A jaded genie, fed up with humanity's greed, goes all Wishmaster on our asses.

Requiem	A UFO has crashed in the forest near the town from the first ever episode, and what's Krycek up to this time?



Season 8	Season Rating:

Within (Pt 1)	With Mulder missing, Agent Doggett heads the team to track him down.

Without (Pt 2)	Doggett is put in as permanent replacement for Mulder.

Patience	Something bat-like is on the kill-kill.

Roadrunners	Scully and a huge slug in Utah. What's not to love?
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Invocation	How can a young boy, kidnapped ten years ago, still look the same when he finally turns up?

Redrum	A suspected murderer finds his life is running backwards.

Via Negativa	The leader of cult has the power to enter people's dreams and kill them as they sleep.

Surekill	X-ray vision is a real killer.
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Salvage	I am Iron Man.

Badlaa	An Indian mystic exacts bloody revenge.

The Gift	Doggett regrets investigating Mulder's past.

Medusa	A serial killer is at work in Boston's underground system.
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Per Manum	A husband searches for answers after claiming that his wife died after giving birth to an alien child.

This Is Not Happening (Pt 1)	An abductee is found, apparently returned after being subjected to alien experiments, Scully and Doggett feel this could help them locate Mulder.

DeadAlive (Pt 2)	Conclusion.

Three Words	Mulder is forbidden from working on The X Files, but continues anyway.

Empedocles	Mulder is asked to help investigate the murder of Doggett's son.

Vienen	Doggett is assigned to investigate murders on an oil rig, only to find Mulder has got there ahead of him.

Alone	Doggett is partnered with Reyes, a big fan of Mulder and Scully, and soon both have disappeared whilst working on their first case together.

Essence (Pt 1)	The Syndicate go all out to cover any traces of alien experiments, and threaten the safety of Scully and her as yet unborn baby. Mulder, Doggett, Reyes and even Krycek are forced to join forces.

Existence (Pt 2)	Conclusion.
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Season 9	Season Rating:

Nothing Important Happened Today, Part 1 & 2	Doggett investigates how a man was forced to drive off a bridge. He asks Scull;y for help, but will she be prepared to leave her cushy teaching position to go back to work on The X Files?

Dæmonicus	Something Satanic stirs in west Virginia.

4-D	When Doggett and Reyes are shot during the stakeout, but each shooting seems to be occurring in a different time splice, it's time to call for Mulder and Scully. Oh shit....too late for that.

Lord of the Flies	Reality TV gone bad results in flies in the eyes.
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Trust No 1	Scully is forced to make a decision that could jeopardise Mulder more than ever before. Yeah, right.

John Doe	Doggett awakens in a Mexican prison, suffering total amnesia.

Hellbound	Reyes seems to like the look of men skinned alive.

Provenance (Pt 1)	Alien conspiracy guff.
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Providence (Pt 2)	More alien conspiracy guff.

Audrey Pauley	Reyes nearly dies in a car crash, and experiences bizarre, hospital based glimpses of....the afterlife?

Underneath	An old adversary of Doggett, The Screwdriver Killer, is back in the frame.

Improbable	Can playing draughts turn you into a serial killer? Apparently, when in the company of Scully, it can.
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Scary Monsters	A young boy is traumatised by something underneath his bed.

Jump the Shark	Are The Lone Gunmen ready to make the final sacrifice for their cause?

William	Could an elderly intruder into X Files HQ be a Mulder from the future? Does anyone really care anymore?

Release	Was an FBI agent involved in the death of Doggett's son?
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Sunshine Days	The Brady Bunch? Are you fucking kidding?

The Truth, Part 1 & 2	Trust me, you'll be more confused when this one finishes than before you hit play.



Movies

The X Files (1998)	See review here.

The X Files: I Want to Believe (2008)	Yet to see.	Yet to see